Chason is 3!!!

Our little big man is 3! Chasey Boy, as we like call him, is like a little firecracker - he's small but packs a punch! :) It's definitely been a challenge, finding that 3's are a bit harder than the 2's. But an immense joy nonetheless. We started off the day (May 28th) with donuts of course, then hung out and enjoyed a beautiful day at home with our family and with my dad who had just flown in from CA that week for a 2 week visit (blog to follow). Sophie & I had fun making the "race car cake" they had been eyeballing in a kids cake book we had, we had pizza for dinner and opened presents. So thankful for this little boy and am eager to see what all this personality transforms into as he grows and matures :).

Sophie is 5!!!

Unbelievable! Our 1st sweet baby is 5 already! Though really it is hard to remember life without this girl :). We had the most wonderful day on her birthday (June 6th, yes, she was our 6/6/06 baby!) - I am pretty sure everything went according to her hearts desires: #1, Grampy was here! My dad came to visit and made it for both Chason & Sophie's bdays (and kind of his own as he arrived the day after his 55th). Donuts for breakfast at our new favorite spot Yoyo Donuts (bacon maple bar was a bonus!), Mall of America for a free unlimited ride pass for her bday (their kids club rocks!) and of course ribs for lunch at Famous Daves (though she did say she would have rather had her dad's :). Then we grilled dogs & brats, played on the slip-n-slide (me & my dad both amused the kids - and likely all of our neighbors - by going down. No pictures of that one, lol!) and birthday cake and presents to finish off a perfect day.

Here are some pics of our fun - of one of Cal just to make you giggle...

Motherhood as a Mission Field

I HAD to post a link to this article. It rocked my world and is full of so much truth for mom's who are weary. This article found me in God's perfect timing and when I was feeling extremely weary as a mom.

I had a rough day with the kids, and feeling very "unsuccessful", I climbed into bed, I pulled up http://www.girltalkhome.com/ on my phone and found this article posted there. It convicted me to the core, but filled me with such hope and refreshment - like wind in my sails! I closed my eyes and went to sleep. Little did I know that at 3:50am, Calvin would wake up with wet sheets from a leaky bottle (yes, he is 20 months old and STILL not sleeping through the night), Sophie would then simultaneously wake up as we are changing the said sheets to announce an accident of her own, and after we got the two sets of sheets changed and kids back to bed, Chason would wake up because he couldn't find his cup ... and Cal screamed and wouldn't go back to sleep. And didn't take his usual morning nap. And I laid in bed in tears completely at a loss. Then I remembered this article...

http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/motherhood-as-a-mission-field

Psalm 103:14 "For He knows our frame, he remembers that we are dust." Thankful for such a compassionate Father who is faithful to meet us perfectly in our weakness.